Important information

This site uses cookies to store information on your computer. By continuing to use our site, you consent to Steel Media's
privacy policy.

Steel Media websites use two types of cookie: (1) those that enable the site to function and perform as required; and (2) analytical cookies which anonymously track visitors only while using the site. If you are not happy with this use of these cookies please review our Privacy Policy to learn how they can be disabled. By disabling cookies some features of the site will not work.

We are not huge fans of silly formatting in game titles. However, even we have to concede that (R)evolve is an apt name for a game that has you revolving a tiny planet to give the creatures living on its surface a chance to evolve before they are struck by asteroids.
You begin with a single plant on the surface of a tiny globe spinning in space. Holding the right of the screen spins the planet clockwise, while doing the same anywhere on the left will see it move in an anti-clockwise d…

Back in March we were enjoying the Winter Paralympics on the TV, and downhill skier Dudeski on our iPhones. While the real games are over, Dudeski's arcade styling can still be enjoyed - and for free, no less.
Making your way to the bottom of the game’s pixilated Lord Shred mountain is not just a simple matter of weaving through the course’s slalom gates.
Each of the mountain’s four stages are filled with different obstacles, from fallen tree’s to Yetis, all of which will end your run is not avoided. It is only by skillfully dodging all of these hazards that you'll make it to the finish line.
If that wasn’t enough, there is also an avalanche chasing yo…

Sega’s new free-to-play game Dragon Coins takes the monster training mechanics from Pokemon, and adds combat based on coin-dozer arcade machines.
Its an odd combination, but play a little and it starts to make sense.
You take a team of five monsters into battle, each of whom sits under one of the five lanes down which coins can be nudged. Dropping coins in the top of the coin dozer pushes the existing penny pile forward, causing some to fall into the monster channels, and the monster to attack.
Much like the arcade machines Dragon Coins mimics, this leads to an addictive mix of tactics and luck during battles.
Collecting different coloured coins has different effects. For example,…

Boom Beach is developer Supercell's follow-up to the phenomenally successful Clash of Clans. This lineage is obvious the moment you boot up the app, with the cartoony visuals, resource management, and tower defense-style battles echoing its fantasy-inspired ancestor.
However, rather than dump you in a Nordic netherword, Boom Beach has you establishing a base on a small tropical island. Your army has arrived to battle the evil Blackguard forces that have captured the surrounding…

Wave Wave is a twitch arcade game which reverberates with the echoes of other mobile hits. Its mazes, which take the form corridors with triangular obstacles jutting from the floor and ceiling, are reminiscent of those found in Flappy Bird. However, its geometric presentation, lo-fi audio, and timed gameplay owe a huge debt to Super Hexagon.
In Wave Wave, you must guide your triangular avatar past angular stalagmites and stalactites. You tap to screen to make your tiny avatar ris…

Zombies. They’re (still) everywhere. These days, though, they’re about as frightening as a bad cold going around the office.
We’ve been talking with Jed Games about their new app JED-GO Untouchable, and they are the first to admit zombies may have lost a little bit of their impact of late.
(Well, maybe the second.)
“Zombies are so popular now, no one’s surprised when you see their semi-decayed faces on-screen any more,” Jed Games say.
Oh... and did we mention JED-GO Untouchable is a game about shooting zombies?
But Jed Games are confident that their app does enough to blast through the global zombie fatigue and emerge on the 'other side' as a fresh an…

Haven’t you always wanted to open up a lava lamp and reach inside to touch one of those incandescent shimmering blobs?
Well, though Tyjamaxy Empire's Lava Samurai can’t quite provide you with that experience (and I do NOT recommend it trying at home), this game does enable to you to slice and dice as many lava lamps as you ruddy well like.
Seems like a fair compromise.
We spoke to Karen Scarff, MD at Tyjamaxy Empire, about Lava Samurai, including its suitability for touchscreen devices like the iPhone.
“Lava Samurai is a lava lamp-slashing game where you use your fingers to cut up as many lava lamps as possible, while avoiding the dreaded light bulbs. There are three…

When someone says their game is for free, there's always going to be a catch - either it's merely a demo for something larger, or there are multiple strings attached in an effort to guide you towards their In-App Purchase store. While the former is something we're used to, the latter is still a sore point for many gamers as developers often strip back their game, holding back gameplay behind artificial walls (often through extended waiting periods).
Middle Manager of Justice by Double…

For those of you out there who are fans of Vice City and used to the quirks of iOS gaming (that is to say, touch-based gaming controls) then I can get you in and out of this review fairly quickly: 'It's everything you loved about the original, but with less adequate - though still useable - controls'. Also it's gorgeous.'
For everyone else, lets dig a little deeper.
Rockstar Games' second third-person foray in their Grand Theft Auto series is still regarded an all-time classic, even…

[This title is featured as the Mini-Review for the Friday News Wrap-Up for the 30th of November, 2012]
It's a thin premise, but The Bowling Dead by Slant Six Games and Activision places you in the unusual position of a zombie apocalypse survivor who discovers a bowling ball that seems to be the only thing that can stop them.
Obviously the first part isn't new, but the second part results in a strangely addictive title. It's a sort of mash up between Full Fat's Zombie Flick and a basi…

Why is the E in evolution turned around into a 3 for the sake of this title? Well because the whole concept of primordial evolution is apparently aided by three helpers named Nunstuck, Git, and Slotermeyer. 3Volution has you evolving through life forms in what amounts to sort of a high speed soccer game, complete with power-ups and obstacles creating an experience that can be unfair and over before you know it, but set up so that you instantly press retry to give the whole affair anoth…

One thing that's been great about the success of the App Store has been all the simple yet addictive high score arcade titles that developers have been experimenting with. For a gamer in his 30s like myself, it reflects a simpler time when these games ruled the arcades, and had players vying for position on those hallowed leaderboards. Super Tiny Leap takes this idea, an old school aesthetic, and turns it towards the vertical climbing genre that Doodle Jump popularized all those years…

Have you ever played one of those coin tossing games at an arcade (I know arcades aren't exactly common any more unless you live in Asia, but stick with me here)? Coin Army takes the concept of chucking coins forthwith, and trades out the opportunity to win cash and prizes with the success of a war effort... all wrapped up in a freemium package. Mmm, tasty.
With the flick of a finger, you send coins out into battle. Think of them as thin, round, and shiny soldiers. Hitting tanks, comm…

Skyriders by Inverse Blue treads a fine line. Skill-based time-trial racers are notorious for their sharp difficulty curves, and this space-themed title provides no less of a challenge, however clever level design and simple, yet insanely fun gameplay keeps you coming back for more punishment.
First appearances may make you think of games like F-Zero and you'd be on the right path, however instead of racing AI opponents you're attempting to beat your own time and score. In order to do…

Doodle Jump remains a stalwart casual-gaming superhero for the iOS platform, elegantly combining dead-simple controls unique to the iPhone with an addictive challenge that spurs you on to keep reaching higher. Sonic Jump by SEGA attempts to repackage the whole platforming experience of its bigger platformers in to a basic jumper, and surprisingly, it fits perfectly.
Some may think this sounds odd, especially as the original titles involved jumping, but also a LOT of running too - so h…